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The Dispatch welcomes letters to the editor from readers. Typed letters of 200 words or
fewer are preferred; all might be edited. Each letter must include name, home address and daytime
phone number.
Dispatch.com also posts letters that don't make it to print in
The Dispatch.

I respond to the episode "What's a 'drive-by lawsuit?'" broadcast Sunday on "60 Minutes." There was a lot of incomplete and incorrect information portrayed about the Americans with Disabilities Act, accessibility and litigation.

A criminal probe has been launched by authorities into the horrific “rave” Party fire in Oakland, one of the worst fires in modern California history, with at least 36 confirmed fatalities and more expected. At the top of the list of suspects ought to be “authorities.” The site of this tragedy was well-known to building inspectors, the police, fire department and social services. It had a long history of code violations and illegal occupancy. Surely, the large party crowd did not just appear that evening without notice.

A criminal probe has been launched by authorities into the horrific “rave” Party fire in Oakland, one of the worst fires in modern California history, with at least 36 confirmed fatalities and more expected. At the top of the list of suspects ought to be “authorities.” The site of this tragedy was well-known to building inspectors, the police, fire department and social services. It had a long history of code violations and illegal occupancy. Surely, the large party crowd did not just appear that evening without notice.

I am baffled by the proposal to allow weapons, especially concealed weapons on Ohio State University's campus (“Armed campus,” Dispatch article, Tuesday). Had Abdul Razak Ali Artan had access to a gun on campus, what additional damage could he have done? The Ohio State Police Department handled the situation and while there were injuries, the only fatality was the gunman. Why would we want guns on campus?

Richard C. Pfeiffer, Jr. has been a true public servant for nearly his entirely life: serving in the Armed Forces, representing the community in Ohio's General Assembly, becoming Franklin County Municipal Court's first environmental judge, and serving the people of the city of Columbus as the Columbus city attorney. As city attorney, he championed transparency and openness with the community, and taking decisive and expedient action to address matters of public concern.

I wonder if letter writer Connie Hammond could clarify just exactly how Gov. John Kasich’s opposition to boycotting Israel would inhibit the civil liberties of Ohioans (“Anti-boycott bill ill-conceived,” last Thursday)?

In the past week, The Dispatch has headlined several articles related to Ohio’s heroin epidemic, two of them titled, “Ohio leads US in overdose deaths" and "Response to Ohio’s drug crisis? Not enough.” The results and comments from these articles were not surprising to public officials who are seeking solutions to this epidemic.

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